Job Specification

Purpose :

- To provide business planning support and advice through all phases of the business planning process within the Provincial Highways Management Division, including analysis, interpretation and advice to senior management regarding business planning requirements, procedures and processes, and responses to complex business planning issues.
- To develop or assist in the development of strategic and operational planning resources, business cases and integrated approaches to business planning within the division.
- To provide timely business advice and consultation services to program areas within the Provincial Highways Management Division on the development of business cases for new program areas or for program area changes where approval of central agencies (e.g., Treasury Board Secretariat, Ministry of Government and Consumer Services, etc.) is required, including leading and/or coordinating scoping, development, analysis and evaluation of new programs/lines of business and business/program change initiatives.

Key Responsibilities :

1. Business Plan Development and Coordination
- Coordinates the annual business planning process for assigned program area(s).
- Develops Treasury and Management Board submissions and Program Review, Renewal and Transformation (PRRT) submission elements as well as develops business planning reports and supporting documentation.
- Makes presentations to senior management to gain approvals. Participates in briefings with PHM staff, staff in other divisions, ministries and central agencies to negotiate funding requests and resolve issues related to submissions.
- Consults with colleagues and managers at other ministries to address issues where initiatives impact their operations and ensures adequate consultation and coordination of shared and joint initiatives.
- Prepares a range of business planning reports, correspondence and briefing materials to support business initiatives; Conducts analysis and provides recommendations on appropriate courses of action.
- Conducts analysis (e.g., policy, risk, legal, financial, etc.) of business plan submissions and other initiatives to ensure they are sound and reflect division, ministry and government key business directions.
- Provides analysis and advice to senior management within PHM Division, and staff in other divisions, ministries and central agencies to support approval of submissions.
- Responds to ad hoc questions from staff of central agencies, other divisions within the ministry and senior management within PHM Division regarding specific submissions.
- Provides advice regarding the interpretation and application of business planning policies, procedures, directives, guidelines and processes.
- Provides guidance and direction to program staff in producing various reports and other information, including materials for Estimates Briefing Book, Treasury Board, Management Board and other submissions, cash and accrual forecasts.
- Leads, facilitates and participates on internal working groups, communities of practice, committees and project teams in the area of business planning, analysis and process improvement.
- Develops strategic and operational planning resources for divisional use to support planning and performance measurement activities; Assists program areas in the development and implementation of performance measures.
- Researches and analyzes new business planning and performance management issues and processes, assesses suitability as well as promotes best practices in business planning and performance measures to all staff levels and key stakeholders.

2.Analysis and Advice
- Scopes, develops, analyses and evaluates new programs/lines of business and business/program change initiatives in the context of existing and anticipated business needs and best practices.
- Prepares and/or reviews detailed business cases to support recommended business strategies and new change initiatives.
- Plans, leads and co-ordinates the design, development, testing and implementation of re-engineered and new business services, business models and best practices.
- Researches, designs, develops and implements tools, methods, processes, performance indicators and standards to ensure the integrity and validity of the business plan and change initiatives.
- Leads and prepares documentation of business processes, methods, practices and associated tools.
- Identifies, evaluates and monitors trends and issues to ensure the successful implementation of change initiatives.
- Identifies issues emanating from research, analysis, and risk assessments and proposes action plans

3. Project Leadership and Management
- Leads and participates on multi-disciplinary project teams through all phases of projects, including agreeing on scope and deliverables, developing project charters, planning, resourcing, prioritizing, scheduling, monitoring, problem solving, guiding staff, reporting on recommendations and seeking necessary approvals.
- Develops or supports the development of business cases for the acquisition of fee-for-service consultants/service providers; Prepares requests for proposals/quotations, evaluates submissions, manages consultants/service providers on a per project basis, monitors consultant/service provider
performance to ensure deliverables meet or exceed agreed upon requirements and deals with issues of non-performance as warranted and appropriate.
- Coordinates cyclical and in-year business planning submissions that cross program areas, including developing project plans and critical paths, scheduling activities and providing technical support and expertise.
- Negotiates with program managers to seek appropriate changes to projects based on the fiscal climate.
- Develops and presents reports to senior management along with providing recommended options.
- Maintains liaison with various corporate support areas (e.g., finance, human resources, policy, communications and legal services) in the development of business cases to create presentations and submissions.
- Leads and tracks projects in the business plan as well as follows up and provides alerts when critical milestones have been missed.

Knowledge / Skill :

- Division, ministry and government organization, programs, priorities, business planning and approval processes to co-ordinate business plans and submissions.
- Economics, business and accounting principles as well as financial planning and management practices applicable to governments.
- Business planning procedures, directives and processes, including the preparation of reports for senior management to gain approvals and decisions as well as develop and prepare business cases and Treasury and Management Board submissions.
- Conducting research, quantitative and qualitative analysis (e.g., cost-benefit analysis, policy analysis, risk analysis) and presenting basic financial data to support the understanding and approval of, or to provide clarification in resolving specific submission issues.
- Project management and performance measurement skills to lead and coordinate business planning submissions that cross program areas, develop project plans and critical paths as well as schedule activities and provide technical support and expertise, track projects and assess if milestones have been met.
- Theory and practice of performance management, business process modelling, change management, benchmarking, resource management to research, test and implement applicable methods, standards, models and tools and to ensure compliance, best practices and quality of program area outputs in terms of economy, efficiency and effectiveness.
- Oral and written communication skills to provide instructions, advice, options and reports to diverse stakeholders.
- Standard computer applications (e.g., word processing, spreadsheets, presentations) to prepare own materials including databases, reports, presentations, perform statistical analysis.

Interpersonal / Influencing Skill :

- Consultation skills to negotiate with program areas and to promote and negotiate approval within the division, ministry and central agencies.
- Convincing skills to advise management and staff regarding business planning submissions (e.g., program reductions/enhancements), to obtain agreement concerning specific business planning issues, and to advocate for additional funding or continuation of programs.
- Communication skills to liaise with various corporate support areas (e.g., procurement, human resources, policy, communications, legal, financial, etc.) in the development of business cases and to create presentations and submissions.
- Interpersonal and advisory skills to develop and maintain effective working relationships and to lead consultations with stakeholders.

Analyzing / Problem Solving Skill :

Analyzing and problem solving skills in:
- Identifying trends and potential risks (e.g., financial, HR, political, operational, legal, etc.) for new programs and operations.
- Synthesizing basic financial information and business descriptions into understandable summaries.
- Analyzing and interpreting requests, researching options and identifying alternatives to conflicting information.
- Identifying potential problems and developing mitigating strategies.
- Determining instances where additional expertise is required (e.g., legal, human resources, financial, policy, communications, procurement, etc.).
- Reviewing business plan submissions and other initiatives to ensure they reflect division, ministry and government key business directions.
- Providing advice to senior management and preparing reports and recommendations within areas of expertise.
- Coordinating and prioritizing concurrent sensitive issues for management's attention.

Decision Making / Responsibility :

Responsible for:
- Coordinating the business planning process for a program area or areas.
- Providing financial and business planning advice and direction for the division.
- Managing business planning projects under the direction of a manager and team lead and within functionally related legislation, financial and business planning policies, procedures and approval processes to ensure the soundness of business plans and adherence to key government, ministry and divisional business directions.
- Assessing program needs and making recommendations for specific annual and in-year business plan submissions.
- Recommending funding and resource levels to justify program initiatives.
- Anticipating and defining funding challenges resulting from constraints or emerging issues (e.g., under or over expenditures, government commitments, changes in government, etc.)
- Developing strategic planning resources for divisional use that support planning and performance measurement activities.
- Working with colleagues to justify budget forecasts and conducting research and analysis into new business planning and performance issues and processes in order to assess the suitability for divisional application.
- Performing financial evaluations for procurement projects including Alternative Financing and Procurement (AFP) initiatives.
- Assessing the feasibility of ideas raised by stakeholders such as executives and political staff.

Decisions are guided by the framework of established policies and procedures, relevant legislation, guidelines and protocols (e.g., government management and procurement directives, financial and accounting principles, government business planning and financial reporting processes and ministry decision making and approvals processes).

Has latitude to:
- Determine whether proposed financial and offset strategies will require an in-year submission and that planned submissions are placed on the submission list.
- Coordinate the appropriate review of all financial information on ministry submissions to central agencies.
- Determine approaches for researching, analyzing and reporting within accepted standards and principles.

Contacts / Stakeholder :

- Managers within the division, the ministry, of other ministries and central agencies to respond to specific requests for information, maintain liaison regarding contentious issues, negotiate and defend funding requests and assumptions, and to address issues where divisional or ministry initiatives impact their operations and ensure adequate consultation and coordination of shared and joint initiatives.
- Senior management to provide support regarding business related issues.
- Staff at ministry agencies (e.g., Metrolinx) to provide and exchange related program area information.
- Other ministry's agencies (e.g., Infrastructure Ontario) and other external service providers to ensure adequate consultation and coordination of Alternative Financing and Procurement (AFP) projects.
- Municipal partners to discuss potential transfer payment agreements and financial information.
- External service providers/consultants for project design, development and implementation work, sharing of best practices, benchmarking, analysis and research.

Guidance / Supervision :

- Leads project teams and working groups in coordinating submissions within the program area, or that cross program areas, including developing
project plans and critical paths, scheduling activities and providing technical support/expertise.
- Provides financial and technical advice to ministry staff and managers to develop and negotiate recommendations.
- Assists program areas in the development and implementation of performance measures.
- Provides advice to program areas on the interpretation and application of business planning procedures, directives and processes.
This document is a copy of the current, approved job description from the OPS Job Description Repository (JDR) maintained by the Ministry of Government
Services effective as of the approval dates
- Shares knowledge, information and explanations about business analysis.

Demands / Pressures :

Work Demands :

- Frequently deals with unexpected changes to deadlines, tight time pressures and conflicting work demands and priorities and demands from various stakeholders.
- Occasional requirement to work overtime or outside regularly scheduled hours, especially during peak workload times during the annual business planning cycle or when travelling to attend meetings.
- Occasional requirement to travel within Ontario.

Mental / Sensory :

- Frequently required to concentrate and focus when researching, reading, listening, writing and speaking in the provision of advice on business and financial matters and analyzing complex business or financial data.
- Frequently required to concentrate while making presentations, leading meetings and facilitating discussions with various stakeholders to absorb details, capture feedback and ensure all viewpoints are acknowledged and considered.
- Frequently required to shift direction and/or focus.

Conditions / Environment :

Work is performed in a typical office environment.